Keeperâ€™s Concealement AIWB Holster

Appendix Carry seems to be an extremely popular method of concealed carry these days. Various brands are now available in lieu of the “need” and “want” for a comfortable and quality holster. Unfortunately, this method of carry is variable to each person when compared to traditional strong-side carry. Everyoneâ€™s body is built differently and therefore there is no one single holster that is comfortable for everyone in the appendix area. That is until now.

Specifications

100% molded kydex

Full guard sweatshield

Body side of the holster is covered in soft side Velcro, so you can place supplied foam wedges anywhere you see fit in order to wedge the muzzle and grip into your body.

Velcro is also on the solid kydex belt loop, so if you are running a Wilderness or Atlas Belt, you can double back your belt and Velcro the loop in place for added security and stiffness.

The loop has three height positions and a cant adjustment.

There is a cut away from the muzzle to the trigger guard so that you can kick with your leg freely even if carrying a full-sized gun. This is an enormous advantage if involved in a grounded, extreme close quarter situation and need to have freedom of the legs.

Adjustable tension which is able to be modified with a 5/64th Allen wrench. Holster comes preset at medium tension

There is a “clamshell” molding around the trigger guard that wedges the holster along the contour of your belly’s â€œhollowâ€ (the space that angles back towards your hip from your belly button)

This style of clamshell covers the bottom of the trigger guard to keep the gun from rocking when you’re getting a full firing grip at speed.

Â Has a flap that is molded over the muzzle to add strength, make a large surface area against your body and to protect you from extreme heat when shooting for long periods of time.

Holster belt loop is 1.5 in

Primarily designed for Wilderness Survival belts but will work with any â€œmicroâ€ adjustable belt.

Molds are currently available for:

All Glocks

M&P (small frame)

Sig 229 (non rail)

M&P Shield

1911 (5 in. railed)

More to come

Background

Keepers Concealment is the brainchild of avid shooter and firearms instructor Spencer Keepers. He knows the firearms world extremely well and is not shy to show that he knows what heâ€™s talking about. When Keepers isn’t working his nine to five job he instructs and hosts classes whenever he can. Currently Keepers is an expert at the F.A.S.T. test, and one of eleven handgun masters through Tom Givens of Rangemaster.

Originally, Keepers got into the idea of making a holster after training with Todd Green. After Keepers saw Green carry a full-size H&K AIWB, he knew he had to start looking into building a rig for himself to carry in this precarious position. From there he got a belt, a Glock 35 and went to work. He found a spot on his body that he could sit down with but unfortunately printed like a printing press. Keepers had an idea to push in on the edges of the â€œbuttâ€ of the gun and he realized this could make the gun â€œdisappear.â€ He needed a holster that would do just that, so he built his first â€œKeepersâ€ from scratch.

He went through all of this trial and error of building a perfect AIWB rig for the sole purpose of there was nothing on the market at that time that would do what he wanted. The closest was a Custom Carry Concepts Shaggy, but was still not good enough for him. Also, sometimes you couldnâ€™t get a holster for your gun in upwards to a year or more from Custom Carry Concepts. This holster designing endeavor wasnâ€™t without a sufficient amount of feedback. Craig Douglas (SouthNarc) of Shivworks helped Keepers in perfecting what is now one of the most comfortable appendix rigs available.

Keepers sent Douglas a sample for a Glock 19 earlier this year and he thought it was â€œokay.â€ Keepers stated, â€œThat was not good enough for me.â€ At Douglasâ€™ Extreme Close Quarters Concepts (ECQC) class, Keepers showed him some of the new, updated models and they talked about the need for it to be narrow. Douglas used one of the Glock 17 rigs the custom holster maker brought with him and he fell in love. According to Keepers, â€œItâ€™s the first holster that he had used (if I recall correctly) that he could really conceal a full-size Glock 17 in and fight with it on. Iâ€™ve worked with him via phone and at his Armed Movement in Structures (AMIS) class to refine them some. Most of that has come from me just looking and thinking about how to solve problems [and considering] what someone else would need.â€ Currently Keepers has stated that he needs to expand with a shop and staff for his holster making. Heâ€™s now developing a traditional strong-side holster and mag pouch as well. Also, heâ€™s in the process of developing a tuckable holster that, in his words â€œis unlike anything on the market.â€

If you know me, or have read my previous writings, I am a huge proponent of appendix carry for the every day, concealed carrying citizen. In my opinion, no other method of carry is as efficient, concealable, comfortable and effective in an extreme close quarterâ€™s situation. Most defensive encounters occur at three to five feet and will more than likely go to the ground. Fumbling with an inefficient and cheaply designed holster will more than likely lead to your downfall. Even though having ran a vast assortment of brands and designs of appendix rigs, none gave me the â€œwowâ€ factor.

That was until I initially saw Chris Fryâ€™s â€œKeeperâ€ of MDTS Training. I saw it on his Facebook page and after seeing this strange, awkward kydex holster I knew I had to do my own research. After reading prior reviews on it that eventually brought me to Craig Douglasâ€™s own forum Total Protection Interactive, (TPI) I was even more intrigued. I had never seen a holster in such a strange configuration designed primarily for appendix carry. I saw that it had made it through multiple evolutions in Douglasâ€™s ECQC which let me know how durable it was and meant it could pretty much last through anything. With its high ride height, strange Velcro wedges and high price point I still wasnâ€™t sold though. That all changed when I attended my own ECQC class with Craig Douglas at the helm.

There my fellow colleagues and I were attending a three day ECQC class instructed by Craig Douglas up in Pelham New Hampshire on a warm October day. He brought along his personal carry gun residing in what was to be expected a Keepers Concealment â€œKeepersâ€ AIWB holster. I honestly tried to play dumb at first acting like I knew nothing about it. I thought I was Mr. â€œKnow-it-Allâ€ with my Raven Concealment Vanguard 2 that I was using daily as my AIWB rig. Well, letâ€™s just say that all changed after a few evolutions and seeing how easy it was to get stripped off my gun. It wasnâ€™t a good feeling to say the least. Finally during a break I started poking questions at SouthNarc and asked about how he liked it. â€œTry it out,â€ he said and he handed me his personal Keepers to do the live-fire portion of shooting with. After those strings of fire, that was it. I was a believer and needed my own ASAP.

After going back and forth with Spencer Keepers himself my holster finally arrived in the mail. I was not let down by the spectacular craftsmanship. From the detailed instructions, extra foam wedges, smooth edges and secured Velcro there were no complaints on my end. I ended up going off of Douglasâ€™s opinion and had it made for a Glock 17 even though I carry a Glock 19. There are a few reasons for this, first is that if I take ECQC in the future my holster will be able to take the Glock 17T that we use for Simunition training. Also the longer body of the holster helps push the â€œbuttâ€ of the gun back into your belly and conceal it better. Quoted from Keepers, â€œThis holster will conceal a larger gun normally better than a smaller one, so if you want to carry a Glock 26 get a holster molded for a Glock 19 or Glock 17. Everyone that has tried a Glock 19 and Glock 17 holster, like the Glock 17 holster better.â€

If you think about it the length of the actual holster means nothing especially that you have all the comfort of the rounded edges, thin tip at the muzzle and adjustable foam wedges. Keepers also noted that by wearing a sleeveless Nike compression style shirt under the holster will help with comfort and draw speed. Another thing to note is if you do end up for some reason having printing issues with the holster, use more belt tension. As noted from the bullet points at the beginning of the article, using a Wilderness Survival Belt will help with carrying this holster. The added soft sided Velcro on the actual buckle of the holster will mean you are able to secure the remaining end of your belt on top of it. This will make this holster virtually unable to move and extremely secure.

As aforementioned earlier, I have absolutely no complaints about this holster and is literally the most comfortable and enjoyable holster to wear specifically for the appendix position. Do note that Keepers supplies extra foam wedges with his holster because they will compress and wear down after time. There is no specific spot that you have to put the wedges, but it is advised to put them at the bottom near the muzzle in order for the â€œbuttâ€ of the gun to be pushed into your belly. The cant of the holster is, as mentioned earlier, fully adjustable and can even be adjusted while wearing it. For me personally, I run a five to seven degree reverse cant so that the muzzle is in to the centerline of my body. This helps me with comfort and concealability. Just as with anything else in specifics to appendix carry; it will all vary person to person.

Overall, if youâ€™re looking for an in-depth, researched and perfected concealed carry holster for appendix carry I would highly recommend checking out the â€œKeepersâ€ from Keepers Concealment. I hands down will honestly state that this is the definition of a concealable, tough, comfortable and secure appendix holster. Youâ€™re only hurting yourself for not checking this fine piece of gear out.

About Ian Strimbeck

Ian Strimbeck is a veteran of the United States Marine Corps, where he conducted training for host-nation forces in small-unit tactics as an Infantry Rifleman. During that time, he attained experience in combat and security operations, and was in multiple high-tension environments. He deployed twice, once in support of OIF and the other in support of the 22nd MEU (Marine Expeditionary Unit).
Ian is a certified Combat Focus Shooting Instructor, NRA Basic Firearm and Massachusetts State Police Firearms Instructor, certified Glock Armorer and certified Fit Shot Instructor. He works executive protection services for Resolute Security Group, and writes for the Personal Defense Network. He is also a founding member of the Association of Defensive Shooting Instructors.

I like the rounded edges. It looks like it would be comfortable against your skin. It looks pretty bulky though – like it would take up a lot of room on your waistline. I can’t remember the name but I think I read about another AIWB holster that had a foam pad on the muzzle. I wonder if that’s going to be the new design trend?

I guess I had no trigger finger discipline, I’d be concerned with it pointing at my junk too. Just shows that antiquated thought processes (like the need for a DA/SA system) are going to take a while to “untrain” from defensive shooting enthusiasts.

I’ve been wearing a Keepers Concealment Holster for better than a year now. Glock 34 AIWB. 12-14 hours per day. The holster is everything it is said to be and more! Spencer really dialed this in, put a lot of thought into this and got it right!!!

I was part of the clean-up crew on a crime scene where the perp carried a Ruger Super Blackhawk 44 mag (cocked) in the appendix position. The muzzle must have rested directly on his junk, we found ‘it’ embedded in the soft ground directly below where he was standing when he jerked his Heater. You should have seen the expression on the corpse’s face!